Skyrmion:Fano: Yes, that's a mancatcher, and was the most unusual standard weapon I could think of from AD&D. I'm now trying to think of weird Indian weapons like the urumi or scissor katars. At any rate, a Bat' leth seems to me the least efficient weapon a person could possibly design outside of the weird shiat used in the Soulcaliber series.

Well, nunchucks could give them a run for their money. At least a Bat'leth is heavy and pointy and metal.

cynicalbastard:m00: cynicalbastard: As a guy who's made swords for a few decades, the bat'leth breaks my heart. It looks like a joke, not a weapon. There's a reason every sword-using culture has come to the basic idea of "grip at one end, sharp pointy bit going the other way". It's simple and it works.

[www.superiormartialarts.com image 330x550]

Yeah, about those- got any refs for their use in actual battle, as opposed to esoteric martial arts and various kung-fu movies?

This is getting a little absurd... First off, it's a scifi tv show, not a martial arts instruction video. The Bat'leth is not a real weapon. The cheap $50 Bat'leths you buy online are no more real weapons than the $50 Highlander katanas you get from fantasy catalogs. So banging a replica of a prop around in a battle and then making fun of its lack of durability as though you expected it to be a real sword is kinda silly.

And second, in the fictional TV universe of Star Trek, the Bat'leth is not meant to be an efficient killing weapon, because Klingons think killing people is fun and want to prolong the enjoyment. If a Klingon wanted to kill you quickly, he'd shoot you. They have ray guns, after all. Bat'leths are for toying with your opponent before you kill him, or ceremonial combat (that still involves someone dying).

Fano:Yes, that's a mancatcher, and was the most unusual standard weapon I could think of from AD&D. I'm now trying to think of weird Indian weapons like the urumi or scissor katars. At any rate, a Bat' leth seems to me the least efficient weapon a person could possibly design outside of the weird shiat used in the Soulcaliber series.

Well, nunchucks could give them a run for their money. At least a Bat'leth is heavy and pointy and metal.

unchellmatt:I've always been of the opinion that a bat'leth wold be a perfect addition to a zombie preparedness arsenal. Great for close fighting, big pointy bits for jabbing in the head, and can be swing easily and effectively for decapitation.

Even though it has been somewhat overdiscussed in the rest of the thread, I am still disappoint that this wasn't shared:

Are those things even sharp? I mean, I get it that you can't have a drunk nerd out in public proudly displaying his collection of awesome replica battle armament from various paramount and upn television shows, but surly they wouldn't have shipped out a razor sharp Klingon sword to someone. Is it even metal?

I've always been of the opinion that a bat'leth wold be a perfect addition to a zombie preparedness arsenal. Great for close fighting, big pointy bits for jabbing in the head, and can be swing easily and effectively for decapitation.